Child&#39;s chair



L. T. QUICK CHILDS CHAIR Nov. 23, 1954 Filed July 2, 1948 Patented Nov.23, 1954 CHILDS CHAIR Leonard Thomas Quick, Mimico, Toronto, CanadaApplication July 2, 1948, Serial No. 36,582 2 Claims. (Cl. 155-127) Thisinvention relates to chairs and particularly to a chiids chair.

The average childs chair used for eating purposes and A Still furtherobject of the invention is t chair of this kind 0 PTPVldC 21 its set-upposition.

A still further object of the invention is to provide a chair of thiskind in which the child may be safely held without any practical dangerof the childs falling out of it.

A further object of the invention is to provide a chair of this kindwhich may be employed for any given child over a period from practicallybabyhood until the age of substantially seven to eight years.

With these and other objects in view, the invention generally comprisesa body formed from two substantially S-shaped, preferably metal, tubularmembers, detachably secured in relation one to the other by a horizontalseat, and including a detachable tray and support rods therefor, thelatter being slidably related to and securable to the forwardlyprojecting arms of the chair formed by the upper portion of eachsubstantially S- shaped member. Preferably the chair embodies aremovable back supported in normal upright position merely by bearingagainst parts of the chair frame, while the chair preferably includes afoot rest, which is adjustable and detachable to meet particularrequirements. In the preferred chair, which includes both tray and footrest, the tray, the seat, and foot rest form, 1n effect, tlc members formaintaining the chair framework rigid in its normal set up position.

The invention will be more fully understood by reference to thefollowing detailed specification taken in conjunction with theaccompanying detailed drawlngs.

In the drawings:

Figure l is a side elevation the present invention. i

Figure 2 is a front elevatlon thereof.

of the chair according to of the centre vertical axis of the chair toFigure 3 is a View illustrating one form of back rest and the mannerthat it engages with the side frames of the chair, the latter beingshown in section.

Figure 4 is a similar view to Figure 3 but showing an alternative formof back rest and alternative construction designed to support the backrest.

Figure 5 is an enlarged fragmentary section taken through the upperportion of one side frame and showing the manner in which the side frameis preferably connected to the seat.

`Figure 6 is a fragmentary detail to show an alternative positioning ofthe foot rest.

Figure 7 is a fragmentary detail illustration of an alternative mannerof constructing the tray to provide a channel for clearing the arms ofthe chair when the tray is slid inwardly towards the arms.

Figure 8 is an exploded view of the various parts 0f the chairillustrated in perspective and with the side frames folded to illustratethe manner in which the parts of the unit may be detached and the wholestructure folded.

Figure 9 is a side elevation of the collapsed chair packed for carryingas a compact unit.

Referring to the drawings, A indicates the chair as a whole which ismade up of a pair of symmetrical side frames l0 of generally S-shapedform and preferably from tubular stock. Being of generally S-shapedform, the lower bar of the S-shaped element indicated by the numeral 11forms the base or bearing support for the side frames. The intermediateparallel section of the side frame indicated by the numeral 12 forms theseat support and the upper parallel portion 13 forms the arm of thechair. The connecting portion of the frame between the parts 12 and 13is indicated by the numeral 14 and is preferably curved as shown. Theconnecting portion 15 between the parallel portions 12 and 11 is off-setoutwardly as at 16 (see Figure 2 particularly) so that the portions 11are disposed laterally outwardly of the normal vertical axis of eachside frame thereby to provide for a sturdy chair which will not tend totip sidewise, whereas the members 11 are extended far enough backprevent tipping backwards. The same is the case in respect to thepossibility of the chair tipping in the forward direction.

These symmetrical side frames are connected together by the seat B whichbears upon the upper surface of the portions 12 of each side frame andis preferably secured thereto by means of the clamps 17, the clampingaction of which is controlled by the wing nut 18 and the screw element19 which preferably pass through the chair seat as shown moreparticularly in Figure 5. When these clamps are secured the whole chairis made quite rigid by the addition of either the foot rest C or thetray D, both elements being preferably employed as part of the chair buteither of which could be omitted. Maximum rigidity, however, is attainedwhen both these elements C and D are employed.

The arms of the chair formed by the portions 13 of the side frames andformed of tubular stock present an open socket at their extremities 20.These form sockets for the rearwardly projecting support bars 21 of thetray D which bars are secured suitably to the tray by the securing means22 which include a spacer 23, so that the tray is spaced from thesupport rod 21 at least sufliciently to clear the upper surface of thearms 13. Therefore, the tray D may be adjusted inwardly and outwardly inrespect to the child seated in the chair and the tray is readily securedby the securing members 24 passing through the extremities of the arms13 into engagement with the supporting bars 21. Alternatively, insteadof employing the spacer 23 to space the tray upwardly from the rodsupports 21, the tray may bear in some measure against these rodsupports and by means of grooves 23a disposed in the bottom of the trayand aligned with the arms 13 of the chair, the tray may be slid inwardlytowards or outwardly away from the arms 13 in which case the grooves 23awill permit the tray to slide over the arms.

The over-all height of the side frame 10 is preferably chosen to be notgreater than the normal spacing between the under surface of a kitchentable and the floor upon which it is supported. Therefore, when not inuse the chair may be pushed under such a table and is then completelyout of the way, In this instance, the chair back E is completelydetachable and, in fact, is freely mounted on the chair. In thisconnection, it will be seen, by reference to Figure 3, that the chairback E is provided with the laterally projecting 'wings 25 formedbetween the lower notches 25a and the upper recessed portion 26a of theback so that the wings will fit between the intermediate and upperhorizontal portions of the side frames 12 and 13 respectively, so thatwhen the lower edge of the back E rests against the rear edge 26 of theseat B the back E is supported in the upright position in a solidmanner. Moreover, when it is desired to move the chair to position undera table, as above referred to, the back is very readily swung downwardlyand attached or caused to lie upon the seat.

An alternative form of construction of chair back is shown in Figure 4,where the back E1 is provided with the laterally projecting lugs 27designed to support it in bearing relation on the intermediate portion12 of the side frame, while a cross bar 2?, may be attached to the backso that its ends project laterally beyond the side edges of the back andthus function to support the back in a similar manner to that describedin connection with Figure 3. As a further alternative, however, the bar23 might be secured to the side frame instead of being an attachedportion of the back El.

The foot rest C is designed to be attached by means of clamps 29 ofsimilar character to the clamps 17 used in conjunction with the seat andmore clearly shown in Figure 5. The screw elements 3G of these clampscooperating with the wing nuts 31 are designed to pass through the footrest to one side of the ends of the foot rest so that the curvedclamping portion of the clamp 29 like that of the clamp 17 may engagethe frame and clamp the foot rest against it. Obviously, as shown inFigure 6, the foot rest can be readily detached and reversed in order toaccommodate the feet of smaller children, whereas it is an easy matterto set the foot rest at any desired elevation for this purpose also.

In the case of particularly small children, it will be desirable as asafety measure to employ a strap 31a extending substantially between thetray and the seat and which the legs of the child may straddle. In thisconnection, the strap may be looped about the transversely extendingtubular bar 21a forming a continuation of and connecting the supportbars 21 and one end of the strap then secured to the chair seat such asby means of a slit extending over a projecting pin 31h projecting fromthe bottom of the seat.

The use of the S-shaped side frames as shown makes it possible readilyto include flexible side covers F which may be turned at their upper andlower extremities to form tubular channels so that by slipping one overthe outer free extremity of each arm and' sliding it around the curvedportion to locate it on the intermediate section 12 the other end of itcan be readily slipped over the free end of arm 13 to assume the normalposition shown in Figure l. This provides against any possibility of thechild slipping out sidewise from the seat.

In addition to the features of the chair as above described, it will beobvious that the chair can be readily collapsed into a compact unit forstorage or transportation. This is clear from a consideration of Figure7. By removing the foot rest C and the tray D and loosening the clampingelement 17, the side frames may be swung so that the arms move outwardlyand the base support 11 moves inwardly, thus substantially to assume theposition shown in Figure 7. Therefore, by placing the back, the tray,and the foot rest on the seat a very compact collapsed unit results.Obviously, of course, it is readily re-assembled merely by swinging theside frames upwardly to proper position, securing the seat clamp, andthen applying the tray, foot rest, and back.

I preferably employ the type of clamp shown, having a main base plate 32and a curved clamping portion to one side thereof, since this providesfor quick, easy, and practical adjustment or detachment when required.

The various features of this chair will be clearly apparent from theforegoing and it will be observed that by employing two independentS-shaped side frames all the various edvantages of adjustment andcollapsibility are realized. Moreover, by providing the free ends on thearms 13, I automatically provide tubular sockets which permit thepractical mounting, the adjustment and steady support of the tray D.

In Figure 8 the parts are illustrated in exploded relation to show themanner in/which the chair is collapsed readily and from Figure 9, itwill be clearly understood that the parts are so designed that thecollapsed unit may be packed in a very compact manner for carrying. Inthis respect the side frames when moved such as in Figure 8 to thecollapsed interlapping position form a base for the packed unit and theupper face of the tray D may then be positioned to lie upon the seat Bwith the support bars 21 projecting rearwardly. In this instance thesecuring means 22 which secure the tray D to the arms 21 projectupwardly and when the back E is placed on top of the tray, the uppershoulders formed by the recesses 26a (Figure 3) at the upper extremityof the wings 25 are caused to abut the securing means 22 so that when asecuring strap 31a is caused to encircle the parts so packed, the back Eis held securely between the strap and the securing means 22. Moreover,it will be noted that the upper end of the back will rest in a naturalmanner against the upwardly projecting edge of the foot rest C so that airm compact unit is provided for carrying the chair from one location toanother as when travelling.

The packing of the chair in the manner described is readily achieved andsecurernent of the packed units made by use of the strap 31a which alsomay form a general utility element of the chair as describedparticularly in the case of very young children and where its use in theset-up chair becomes no longer necessary, it then becomes solely autility element for securing the chair in the packed arrangement.

From the foregoing it will be appreciated that I attain the generalobjects of my invention and it should be noted that the chair is of suchcharacter that it may be used for any given child from practicallybabyhood until substantially seven to eight years of age. In thisrespect, it should be obvious that the chair is of very sturdyconstruction so that it will conveniently support a child of substantialsize whereas by reason of the adjustability of the foot rest C upwardlyor downwardly along the section 13 of the side frames or its reversalinwardly as previously described, the chair is readily fitted to thesize of the child. Consequently, in the later years the chair may beemployed as a general utility chair and the tray employed somewhat inthe manner of a desk or book rest. Finally, it will be appreciated thatthe chair is produced of a minimum number of folded to collapsedposition or moved to set-up position while obviously the parts wheredesired may be readily detached and stored.

What l claim as my invention is:

1. A foldable chair comprising: two side membersV each having threesubstantially horizontal spaced apart sections, the mid horizontalsectionl of each side member connecting with the top horizontal sectionat one of its ends by means of a curved section, and with the bottomhorizontal section at the other of its ends by means of an inclinedsection; a seat member; connecting means for swingably connecting themid horizontal section of each side member to said seat member, one sidemember being connected to said seat member adjacent one side edge andthe other side member being connected to said seat member adjacent theopposite side edge of said seat member, the mid horizontal section ofeach of said side members being parallel to the other one; locking meansfor locking said swingably connected side membersl with respect to saidseat member with their principal planes in parallel relation to eachother; and a back member having wings in interlocking relation with thecurved section of each of said side members that joins the mid to theupper horizontal section when they are disposed in parallel relation toeachy other as aforesaid.

2. A foldable chair comprising: two side members each having threesubstantially horizontal spaced apart sections, the mid horizontalsection of each side member connecting with the top horizontal sectionat one of its ends by means of a curved section,` and with the bottomhorizontal section at the other of its ends by means of an inclinedsection; a seat member; connecting means for swingably connecting themid horizontal section of each side member to said seat member', onesidemember being connected to said seat member adjacent. one side edgeand the other side member being connected to said seat member adjacentthe opposite side edge of said seat member, the mid horizontal sectionof each of said side members being parallel to the other one; lockingmeans main elements, readily' for locking said swingably connected sidemembers with respect to said seat member with their principal planes inparallel relation to each other; and a back member having wings ininterlocking relation with the curved section of each of said sidemembers that joins the mid to the upper horizontal sections thereof thelower edge of said back member resting against the rear edge of saidseat member.

Name Logan Date I une 29, 1948 Number D. 150,076

Number Name Date Parker Oct. 9, 1888 Shaver Apr. 14, 1931 Leibo Jan. 9,1934 Horwitt Feb. 11, 1936 Wood Dec. 28, 1948 Wood Ian. 18, 1949 FlinnFeb. 22, 1949 FOREIGN PATENTS Country Date Great Britain 1885Switzerland Sept. 16, 1941

